Tank Gauging Hazard
Alert
Gauging, Thieving,
Fluid Handling
PREPARED BY:
NATIONAL STEPS
NIOSH
OSHA
OIL & GAS INDUSTRY REPRESENTATIVES
Suspected Inhalation Fatalities
 NIOSH Oil and Gas Sector Program
maintains a database, Fatalities in Oil and
Gas Extraction (FOG) that collects data on
fatal events in the oil and gas exploration and
production industry.
 Fatalities were identified through a variety of
sources including OSHA, media reports, and
professional contacts.
Suspected Inhalation Fatalities
 A summary of the data contained in FOG
related to suspected inhalation deaths to
workers involved in tank gauging, sampling,
and fluid transfer activities at oil and gas well
sites.
 The report can be found at:
www.cdc.gov/niosh/topics/fog/data.html
Case Definition
 Fatalities in the report were associated with
tank gauging, sampling and fluid transfer
activities at oil and gas well sites where the
inhalation of volatile petroleum
hydrocarbons is a possible contributing
factor.
 Many of the 2014 cases are still open so
information is limited.
 Confined space, fires/explosions, and H2S
fatalities were not included.
Summary Points
 During 2010-2014, nine fatalities were
identified that met the above case definition.
 Of the 9 fatalities
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6 occurred in 2014
1 in 2013
1 in 2012
1 in 2010
 3 fatalities occurred in North Dakota, 3 in
Colorado, 1 in Texas, 1 in Oklahoma and 1 in
Montana.
Summary Points
 All of the fatalities occurred at crude oil
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(production) tanks
4 of the fatalities occurred during tank
gauging
5 fatalities occurred during sampling by
pumpers/truckers
All workers who died were working alone
or not being observed
In at least one case, the victim had
previously experienced health effects and
sought medical evaluation
Case # 9
 20 year old male flow tester found
unresponsive on a well pad site face down
in the upper hatch of a crude oil storage
tank.
 The victim was gauging the tank.
 There was no H2S exposure.
 Medical examiner reported the cause of
death as cardiac arrhythmia and exposure
to petroleum hydrocarbon vapors.
Case # 8
 Employee was assigned to an oil production
tank battery to gauge and monitor oil
production.
 Every hour, the employee would gauge each
of the 6 tanks on site by climbing up the
stairs to the catwalk above and dropping a
gauge line into the tank.
 The victim was found at the bottom of the
stairs next to the tank battery.
Case # 7
 A 59 year old oil tanker driver died while
collecting crude oil samples from an open
thief hatch.
 The employee was wearing a 4 gas monitor
which showed an oxygen deficient
atmosphere and the presence of
hydrocarbons exceeding 100% of the LEL at
the time of his death.
Case # 6
 A 57 year old employee working for a
transport company was found collapsed on
a catwalk adjacent to a crude oil tank.
 Time of death was 11:00 AM.
 No significant hydrocarbon vapors or H2S
was detected by emergency responders.
Case # 5
 The employee, 52 years old, lost
consciousness while pulling an oil sample
out of a thief hatch on a tank.
 The employee fell backwards on the 90
degree corner of the catwalk guardrail
where his clothing became hooked to the
guardrail.
 It was determined that he died of natural
causes.
Case # 4
 A truck driver pumping and hauling crude
oil from a tank battery was found slumped
over and non responsive.
 He appeared to have been measuring the
volume of liquid from the top of the tank
battery.
 His H2S monitor did not alarm.
 There were no signs of physical trauma.
Case # 3
 39 year old truck driver was transferring
crude oil from a tank battery.
 A pumper showed up and found the victim
slumped over the railing at the top of the
tank battery.
 He was wearing an H2S monitor.
 There was no H2S or hydrocarbons
detected in the bloodstream during the
autopsy.
Case # 2
 21 year old victim had just finished gauging
a crude oil tank when he was found non
responsive.
 The medical examiner ruled the cause of
death to be hydrocarbon exposure due to
inhalation of petroleum vapors, including
propane, butane, and ethane.
 Death was ruled work related by worker’s
compensation.
Case # 1
 The 30 year old victim was found at 3:00
AM slumped over on the catwalk by an oil
storage tank at the well site.
 Two crew members performed CPR until
emergency responders arrived.
 CPR was continued until the victim was
pronounced deceased at the hospital at 4:35
AM.
Tank Gauging Hazard Alert
 Alert has been put together through the
efforts of National STEPS, NIOSH, OSHA,
and representatives of the O & G industry of
the hazards that can be found when working
around tanks containing hydrocarbons.
 Sections include:
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Hazards that can be encountered by workers
Potential effects of exposure
Protect yourself
Use proper PPE to protect
Employers should…
Tank Gauging Hazard Alert
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Opening Statement:
Opening thief hatches
of storage tanks can
lead to the rapid release of high
concentrations of hydrocarbon gases and
vapors. Those may result in very low oxygen
levels and toxic and flammable conditions
around and over the hatch. Recent reports
have documented fires or explosions, and
described workers experiencing dizziness,
fainting, headache, nausea, and in some
cases, death while gauging tanks, collecting
samples, or transferring fluids. Tank
gauging, thieving, and fluid handling can be
performed safely with proper precautions.
Tank Gauging Hazard Alert
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Closing Statement:
Your life can change in a
single breath or with just one
spark.